Ugh, this is a mischief I could do without, but oddly makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something.... years and years ago (gosh do I feel old now) I would get sudden shin splints. Appearing out of nowhere popping like eggs up on shins that would bruise and swell and last for months and then the swelling would go down and I’d have a dent in my shin for another month or two before the whole cycle would begin again. The only thing that stopped them from occurring was... breaking my back and tearing multiple tendons and ligaments in my ankles and knees to the point of walking more than around the house became nearly impossible, but hey at least no more shin splints the plague of my existence since age 6.

Then last year, I finally had enough with the spasms and rigidity and bit the bullet on getting the baclofen pump. By then most days even getting around my house was a challenge most days, and I used my wheelchair pretty much exclusively whenever I left the house, honestly I didn’t think there was any more harm a surgical oops could do at that point. And thankfully there was no oops, aside from an allergic reaction to the pain meds immediately following the surgery and over the weekend which left me feeling the full pain of 21 stitches for 48 hours until my doctors office opened on Monday.

A month later the pump got filled for the first time, and I spent two weeks on a diet of devil dogs and marshmallows due to plummeting blood sugar, they took me off the gabapentin to fix that, and I was basically off to the races. My body was listening to me again. The tearing of the tendons and ligaments actually had a chance to heal some and each day I was able to do so much more than the day before. I healed up enough for the start of spring to get my garden in order, by April my wheelchair was all but put away , I’ve lost 4 dress sizes, helped my uncle with some deconstruction of an old trailer on his lot, took my grand baby to the zoo and actually walked all around with her (ok Nama needed a long soak and slept for a day and a half afterwards but still).

Needless to say I WAS feeling better than I have ever felt in my life, and then last week the dreaded shin splints made their valiant return and as it is 1:30 in the morning and I’m writing this rather than tucked up sleeping soundly, I can say they have definitely returned with a vengeance. Drawing me from my slumber last night with a sudden and exceptionally sharp pain searing it’s way up and down my shin bone with every tiny movement.

I know I should feel a bit discouraged, even perhaps worried over this new pain, and yet I find myself chuckling even as I gasp in pain, because it really does feel now like I got my old life back. Rather sad, I’ll admit, but seriously from age 6 to age 27 shin splints were my near constant companion, never once deterred by any amount of physical therapy and to have them back again... well it’s like meeting that weird cousin no one ever talks about at a family reunion and feeling slight relieved to know he’s alive still so you won’t be called on to offer your condolences over his passing, and yet spend the rest of the time avoiding eye contact at all costs while offering fevered prayers to the powers that be that they never come over to talk to you.

Okay maybe not the best analogy but give me a break, it’s going onto 2 am on my second day of little sleep